


Danielle's Stories

by Sigilmancy



Category: Original Work
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-25
Updated: 2019-11-09
Packaged: 2021-01-03 00:07:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21170132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sigilmancy/pseuds/Sigilmancy
Summary: Stories about a human necromancer





	1. Decay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the Weekly Pet Prompt on Subeta, prompt Decay

Danielle hadn't heard from anyone in her family for well over a month, but seeing as how it was the last semester of school and she was busy cramming for finals that wasn't overly surprising. They all knew it, too, and knew that they could expect not to hear from her and for her to ignore anything less than an in-person visit or being pulled aside by the school's headmaster for an emergency until all was said and done. But everyone was so, so proud of her; she was on track to be top of her class, and her skills in magic had far exceeded everyone's expectations. Her parents, siblings, aunts and uncles, and even her cousins all eagerly awaited her return to the family's manor where her skills would be put to use helping increase their power and influence. Honestly Danielle wanted nothing more than that, to take her place in her family and outdo everyone else. That had always been her driving force at school, and what put her heads above everyone else who was there simply for education with no real reason for it or anything to put the accumulated knowledge and skills towards when they graduated.

Graduation day finally came, and Danielle was met with a sense of unease. The letters had been sent to her family, an invitation for her parents and siblings though if someone couldn't make it one of the more extended family would likely take their place just to give as much support as possible to the young woman. But that morning as she put on her robes and readied herself for what was to come something just nagged at her, a feeling of something being completely wrong. It was almost like her death sense, in a way, having a similar feel to the unnatural ability of the whole family to sense when something nearby died, or to feel the lingering spirit of something recently dead. Sometimes it triggered when spirits were nearby in general, a feeling Danielle had learned to ignore over the years because those spirits always caused more chaos than curious interactions with them were worth. That last part was what crossed her mind as she checked everything in a mirror hung on the back of her dorm door and gave a satisfied sigh. Nothing to worry about, just some spirit attracted by all the noise and activity of the campus and drawn to anyone that it sensed might be able to interact.

With that in mind Danielle gathered up the last of her things, taking one last look at the room she'd called home for most of her life. All her things were packed away in boxes, ready to be picked up by family servants and brought home after the ceremony was done, leaving behind just the larger bits of furniture that actually belonged to the academy and would get passed on to whoever moved in to the room the next year. It was surreal, and a little sad, but it was time. A sensation further enhanced by the knocking on her door as one of the monitors came by to make sure everyone was up and getting ready; the woman would come back in about fifteen minutes and actually poke her head into the rooms, chastising anyone she found still getting dressed and helping them along. But Danielle was ready, or as ready as she'd ever be, so she took one last deep inhale and exhale before exiting the room.

The entire hallway was buzzing, students running about to get down to the ceremonial hall. Even if they weren't graduating they'd have to sit in and show support for those moving on, as Danielle had done every year before hand. Despite her emotions, and the persistent feeling of wrongness, she put on a smile and greeted both her peers and her juniors, living up to what was expected of her as the top of her class. There was some chatter as she joined a group of her friends, mostly each hassling the other about keeping in touch once they graduated, and soon enough everyone was back stage and waiting.

Like every year, it was a relatively slow affair. The headmaster came out to give a speech, talking about the events of the past year and congratulating the graduating class on their successes. Danielle stood as close to the edge of backstage as she dared, papers in hand for the speech she was expected to deliver as well, and when the headmaster was done his voice calling her name was what drew her attention from practicing the lines. Looking up she took a breath and walked out onto the stage, back straight and composed as always while her eyes looked at the crowd. She wanted to see her family, and have them see her; long white hair done up nicely, perfect makeup accenting her ruby colored eyes, her robes the traditional black but trimmed in gold to signify she had earned her place at the top.

Yet she saw not a single familiar face in the crowd. There were a few pockets of empty seats where some people's families had not made it because they couldn't or didn't care to, or there was simply no one to come for them. She had no idea where her family was supposed to be, but they were just....not there.

Danielle froze for a moment, the world swirling and turning grey around her. The magical light illuminating the stage suddenly seemed darker, and it took her a moment to regain herself.

"Sorry, everyone. There are so many more of you than I expected, I was just a bit overwhelmed. Overwhelmed with joy at the support my classmates are receiving from friends and family who have come here today to honor their achievements." The recovery was swift, and Danielle hid behind a smile and her prepared speech after that. She said her words, though they were meaningless and hollow now, and when it was over made her exit as planned in a slow, controlled pace despite everything in her saying to run.

Even though she was supposed to stick around afterwards, as soon as she was out of sight of the crowd Danielle let her instincts take over. The panicked look set in on her face as she raced through the halls to the school's teleportation room, a place with a permanent circle set up to allow easier access across longer distances. Even now, of course, it was being watched to prevent unauthorized access both in and out but the guard took one look at Danielle and stood aside. He recognized her as a graduating student, and the look of urgency on her face and in her movements.

"Thanks." Danielle managed to huff politely as she skidded into the room, the magic coming as naturally to her as breathing. She pictured home in her mind, the town and her family's manor, trying to focus on those instead of the faces of her family so the circle would work. The activating words fell from her lips like casual, if rushed, conversation and the ground below her began to glow as it reacted to the spell and to her focus, the signet ring on her finger with the crest of her family engraved on it.

In the blink of an eye she'd gone from the cozy, warm school to the freezing, snowy landscape of home. Before she could even open her eyes something hit her nose, and it took her a few moments to register it was the smell of smoke. Not smoke like the chimneys that burned from the homes, no this was so much stronger, and as her eyes adjusted to the difference in light she saw why.....her family's manor lay before her, burned to ashes. And covered in a dusting of snow, suggesting that the fire had happened days or maybe even weeks before hand, the charred remains standing out like a stain on the white landscape.

As her mind processed the scene before her, another horrifying revelation struck; she could see bodies. Blacked beyond recognition, curled up or looking as if they were trying to crawl away or reach for help, nothing now but charred, decaying flesh and bone as a testament to what had once been the people who shared blood with her.

Maybe she screamed, or maybe she just opened her mouth and no sound came out. Either way Danielle fell to her knees in the snow, not caring about the cold or getting her robes dirty. Tears fell down her cheeks, leaving streaks of ice where they passed before they fell. She sat there for what seemed like an eternity, battered by the winter winds until her sorrow turned into hatred. Hatred for the villagers, who had always been jealous of her family and the power they held, who were for sure to blame for what had happened. They would suffer for the slaughter of her family, if it was the last thing she did.


	2. Ghost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Done for NaNoWriMo 2019

Ever since the death of her family Danielle had been haunted. She thought at first she was going mad, dreaming about her parents and siblings and cousins all crowded around and looking at her with sad eyes, asking why. Why had she lived, but they hadn't? Why didn't she notice sooner that they were gone? If she had come home sooner then maybe she could have pulled their souls back from the other side into new bodies, using her necromantic powers to revive them all. But by the time she came back after her graduation they were dead a week or more, and in the days it took her to find a suitable place to settle in and begin her work away from prying eyes the tenday was gone and they were too far on the other side for even the most powerful of magic that Danielle knew.

"I will avenge you." She said to them all one night, staring at the ghosts around her and sighing. "I know I cannot bring you back, but I can make sure those that did this to you pay for their crimes. You will get justice." As if those words would sway the spirits, but of course it did not and Danielle could only lie down and pull the blankets up over herself in hopes of somehow falling asleep despite feeling the eyes of her family watching her.

Danielle had a plan, after all. The ruined castle outside her home village still had a mostly intact basement, and her magic was able to repair it to a safe state and fix most of the major damages that were done simply by the passage of time and neglect. It was hard to find unless you knew where to look, making it even more perfect, and since there were no windows or outside light to tell the passage of time Danielle was able to sleep less and work longer since her internal clock had nothing to judge by. When she needed food or supplies she could cloak herself as different people and go into town, posing as a traveler to get both information and necessary things for survival. At one point she'd disguised herself as someone looking for help from the Gray family, something uncommon but not wholly unexpected.

"Didn't you hear, lass?" The general store owner shook his head at her, unaware of Danielle's true form as she'd disguised herself as a woman just slightly younger than him. "The family's dead. Tragic incident, their mansion burned down a few months back. No one is really sure what happened, though." He shrugged, but Danielle could tell he was lying.

"I see. Were there no survivors? I heard they had a youngest who was still studying somewhere." She asked, trying to seem innocent.

"Aye, but no one knows where she is. Some say she perished in the fires, others say she's gone batshit and somehow blames us for what happened so she's afraid to come back, all paranoid we might try to kill her too. But it was just an accident, no one here ever had anything against them." He shrugged, gazing past her and out the front window of the shop. "They were a strange bunch, no doubt, but they never did anything to hurt any of us. Kept to themselves, mostly. Some were suspect, of course, but without proof they wouldn't act." After that he seemed to be aware of himself, shaking his head again and counting out the change for her. "Anyway, sorry about that. I won't pry into what you were looking to get from them but you're better off going to one of the big cities to find an expert."

"Thank you, sir. Guess I'll do that, then." She nodded, taking her change and leaving the store to turn and head back out of town. The castle was on the main road back to the next big city, so it wasn't strange to see her head that way and another part of what made it the perfect place for her work.

But now Danielle had more information, for though the store owner didn't know it she had been using magic to scan his thoughts and subtly convince him to say what he thought about the family. He didn't have any ill will, but he knew who did and the names of a few families came up in his thoughts while he was lingering on that. So she had a place to start, and the next step of what she was doing could begin.


End file.
